Home Composting Systems: A Guide for Sustainable Living

Home composting is an impactful practice that not only reduces household waste but also enriches the soil, making it a pillar of sustainable living. By turning kitchen scraps, yard trimmings, and other organic waste into nutrient-rich compost, you can reduce your environmental footprint while improving the health and productivity of your garden. This article is designed to walk you through the various systems of home composting, helping you select and maintain a setup that works seamlessly with your lifestyle and space.

Understanding Composting Basics

What is Composting?

Composting is a natural process where organic materials are broken down by microorganisms, insects, and even fungi under controlled conditions. This process converts organic waste into a dark, rich substance known as compost, which can be used to improve soil quality, increase water retention, and stimulate healthy plant growth.

Benefits of Composting

Environmental Impact: Composting significantly reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills where it would release a greenhouse gas. By composting, you help cut down on methane emissions and reduce your carbon footprint.
Soil Health: Compost adds essential nutrients back into the soil, aiding plant growth and helping to restore soil structure. This makes your garden more resilient to erosion, disease, and pests.
Waste Reduction: It allows you to reuse much of the waste that would otherwise be thrown away, including vegetable peels, eggshells, and coffee grounds, turning what would be trash into a valuable resource.
Water Conservation: Using compost in your garden helps retain soil moisture, which means you’ll need to water less frequently. This not only conserves water but also saves you time and reduces your water bill.

Types of Home Composting Systems

Choosing the right composting system depends on your living situation, the amount of waste you produce, and your gardening needs. Here's a breakdown of the most common types of home composting systems:

Tumblers: Compost tumblers are sealed containers that can be turned to mix compost materials. This type of composting is quick and tidy, minimising pests and odours. Tumblers are ideal for small spaces like urban backyards or even balconies. Due to them being contained, they keep materials out of sight and work efficiently to break down the waste as they maintain high internal temperatures. Some have two compartments which allows one compartment to have usable compost whilst the other is processing – meaning a constant use of compost for your garden.
Static Bins: These bins are stationary and can be made from various materials like wood, plastic, or metal. Static bins are great for gardeners who produce a large volume of organic waste. They require minimal maintenance; you simply add waste and let nature do its work. This method takes longer than tumbling but can handle a larger volume of compost.
Worm Composting: This system uses worms to break down organic waste into high-quality compost, known as worm castings. It's highly efficient and works well indoors or in smaller spaces. Worm composters can process waste quickly and produce nutrient-rich compost perfect for intensive planting methods like container gardening. The worm “tea” produced is a rich form of concentrated instant fertiliser.
Bokashi (Fermentation): Unlike traditional composting, which relies on oxygen-based decomposition, Bokashi is an anaerobic process that ferments organic matter in a sealed container. Bokashi can handle a variety of waste types, including meats and dairy, which are typically not recommended for other composting methods. This system is fast, space-efficient, and produces a nutrient-rich juice that can be used as a natural fertilizer.
Aerobin: Is a composting bin that encourages aerobic conditions inside the bin while discouraging the formation of smelly, wet compost. It provides an optimum environment to support aerobic micro-bacteria and aerobic composting. The Aerobin 200 & 400 use a patented lung or aeration core inside a sealed bin to promote aerobic break down of organic matter.

Setting Up Your Compost System

Choosing the Right System: Consider the amount of organic waste you generate, the space you have available, and how quickly you need the compost. Tumblers and worm composting systems are great for fast results and smaller spaces, while static bins, Bokashi and Aerobin are better suited for larger volumes of waste or where space isn't an issue.
Location and Setup: Place your compost system in a location that matches its needs:
- Tumblers and Bokashi bins work well in sunny or partially shaded spots since they don’t require direct contact with the soil.
- Static bins, worm composters and Aerobins should be placed in a more controlled environment where temperature and moisture can be relatively stable.
What to Compost: Most organic waste from your kitchen and garden can go into your compost. However, it’s important to balance “greens” (materials like vegetable scraps and coffee grounds) and “browns” (materials like dried leaves and cardboard). Avoid composting meats, dairy, and oily foods, especially in aerobic systems, as they can attract pests and cause odour issues

Maintaining Your Compost

Daily and Weekly Maintenance Tasks

Proper maintenance is key to successful composting, ensuring your pile or bin decomposes efficiently without odours or pests. Here are essential maintenance tasks:

Turning the Compost: Regularly turning your compost helps aerate the pile, which is crucial for speeding up the decomposition process. For compost tumblers, this means rotating the bin every few days. For static bins, use a garden fork or a compost aerator tool to mix the materials.
Moisture Control: Your compost should have the dampness of a wrung-out sponge. If it’s too dry, microbial activity slows down, delaying decomposition. Add water during dry periods to maintain moisture. Conversely, if it’s too wet, add more browns (carbon-rich materials) to absorb excess moisture and restore balance.
Monitoring Temperature: The temperature of your compost pile can tell you a lot about its health. A warm or hot centre means decomposition is happening effectively. If the pile cools down, it may need more green materials (nitrogen sources), water, or turning to reactivate.
Odour Control: A healthy compost pile should smell earthy. Bad odours can indicate too much moisture, not enough air, or too many greens. Adjusting these elements usually resolves odor issues.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Pests: If rodents or insects become a problem, ensure your bin is secure and you’re not adding materials that attract pests, such as meats or fatty foods.
Slow Decomposition: If your compost seems to be breaking down very slowly, try adding more nitrogen-rich materials, increasing moisture, or chopping added materials into smaller pieces to speed up decomposition.

Using Your Compost

Harvesting Compost

Compost is ready to use when it’s dark, crumbly, and earthy-smelling, typically taking anywhere from a few months to a year. To harvest:

For tumblers and bins: Simply open the compartment or door meant for removing finished compost.
For open piles: Scoop from the bottom or side of your pile, where the compost is oldest.

Applications in the Garden

Soil Amendment: Mix compost into your garden beds to improve soil structure and fertility. It helps sandy soil retain water and breaks up clay soil to improve drainage.
Potting Mix: Combine compost with soil and other amendments to create nutrient-rich potting mix for containers and pots.
Mulch: Use compost as a mulch around plants to suppress weeds, retain soil moisture, and provide a slow release of nutrients.
Lawn Care: Thinly spread compost over your lawn as a top dressing to enhance grass health and vigour.